Cecil County, Maryland: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Elkton, Perryville and North East
Cecil County hosts some of the generating capacity Maryland runs on. Cecil County is home to Elkton, Perryville, North East and Rising Sun. 2 MW of new generation is planned here across 1 unit, led by Pivot Energy (solar), the 2nd largest pipeline among Maryland's counties. 2 MW of it is already under construction or built. Next door, New Castle County, Delaware, has 7 data centers. Its power plants have 1,923 MW of capacity, 99% of it natural gas, the 3rd largest fleet in Maryland. Employers here counted 36,824 jobs in 2025, up 10.1% from 2019 (the fastest growth of 24 Maryland counties).
Cities and towns in Cecil County
Cecil County is home to Elkton, Perryville, North East and Rising Sun.
Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities.
What changed in Cecil County
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Maryland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 103,798 | 107,131 | ▲ 3.2% | 13th of 24 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 33,458 | 36,824 | ▲ 10.1% | 1st of 24 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $50,406 | $66,564 | ▲ 32.1% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.9% | 4.0% | ▲ 0.1pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 8 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | — | |
| Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 2 MW | 0% of today's fleet | 2nd of 2 by size |
8 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly solar. Delmarva Power is the largest utility serving Cecil County, one of 2 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 20.22¢/kWh in 2024, above the 14.84¢ median for Maryland utilities. Unemployment was 4.0% in August 2026, against 3.9% in 2019. 107,131 people live here, up 3.2% since 2020.
Who powers Cecil County
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +8 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Cecil County
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delmarva Power | Investor Owned | Bundled | 186,368 | 20.22¢ | 17% |
| Choptank Electric Cooperative, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 50,697 | 16.46¢ | 23% |
Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.
Operating power plants 9
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 1,909 MW | 99% |
| Solar | 14 MW | 1% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildcat Point Generation Facility | Old Dominion Electric Coop | Natural gas | 1,114 MW | 2018 |
| Essential Power Rock Springs LLC | Essential Power Operating Services LLC | Natural gas | 796 MW | 2003 |
| MD - WL Gore - Cherry Hill | Solar DG MD Cherry Hill, LLC | Solar | 4 MW | 2025 |
| IKEA Perryville 460 | IKEA Property Inc | Solar | 2 MW | 2013 |
| Cecil County CCVT HS | SunE DB42, LLC | Solar | 2 MW | 2015 |
| Meeting House | Nautilus Solar Solutions | Solar | 2 MW | 2023 |
Planned generation 1
| Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100a Swiss Dale Farm | Solar Photovoltaic | 2 MW | Under construction (>50%) | 2026 | Pivot Energy |
The Cecil County labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 36,824 | $66,564 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 1,364 | $73,786 | 0.70 |
| Electric utilities | 94 | $171,613 | 0.94 |
| Data processing and hosting | 17 | $114,896 | 0.15 |
Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out.
Data centers and local rules in Cecil County
No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Cecil County. Maryland has 31 local measures on record statewide, and 3 neighboring counties have one: Chester County, Harford County, New Castle County.
Cecil County and its neighbors
Of the 5 counties that border Cecil County, New Castle County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined.
| County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cecil County | 107,131 | ▲ 10.1% | 1,923 MW | 2 MW | — | — |
| Chester County PA | 557,116 | ▲ 0.3% | 65 MW | — | 1 | 1 |
| Harford County | 266,446 | ▲ 0.8% | 1,090 MW | — | 1 | 2 |
| Kent County | 19,565 | ▼ 5.0% | 67 MW | — | — | — |
| Lancaster County PA | 563,159 | ▲ 3.7% | 1,815 MW | — | 6 | — |
| New Castle County DE | 588,026 | ▲ 4.2% | 2,313 MW | 133 MW | 7 | 1 |
More of Maryland
Cecil County, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Cecil County, Maryland?
2 utilities have service territory in Cecil County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Delmarva Power, Choptank Electric Cooperative, Inc. The largest, Delmarva Power, charged residential customers 20.22¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Elkton, MD in?
Elkton is in Cecil County, Maryland. About 16,670 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Cecil County?
9 operating plants with 1,923 MW of capacity. The largest is Wildcat Point Generation Facility (1,114 MW, natural gas).
How much new power is planned in Cecil County?
2 MW across 1 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 2 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is Pivot Energy.
Are there data centers in Cecil County?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Cecil County. The nearest activity on record is next door in New Castle County.
Is Cecil County adding jobs?
Employers counted 36,824 jobs in 2025 against 33,458 in 2019 (+10.1%, BLS QCEW).
Does Cecil County have a data center moratorium?
No county-level measure is on record for Cecil County. Maryland has 31 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.